The Villa Simone, a cultural center in Six-Fours-les-Plages, France, is hosting an exhibition of photographs by Hans Silvester, a renowned German photographer who has traveled the world for more than 50 years. The exhibition, titled “A World Tour of Scarecrows”, features 70 life-size pictures of scarecrows from various countries and regions, such as France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, Romania, Bulgaria, Ethiopia, Japan, and the United States. The exhibition runs from October 10 to November 30, 2023.
The passion of Hans Silvester
Hans Silvester is best known for his stunning images of nature and wildlife, especially his series on the Omo Valley tribes in Ethiopia. However, he has also developed a passion for scarecrows, which he discovered 50 years ago when he arrived in Goult in the Luberon region of France. Since then, he has always found a moment during his reportages to photograph these immobile anthropomorphs, which he considers as expressions of folk art and culture.
The essence of scarecrows
For Hans Silvester, scarecrows are not only functional objects that protect crops from birds and animals, but also artistic creations that reflect the identity and imagination of their makers. He sees them as symbols of human presence and resistance in the face of nature and modernity. He also admires their diversity and originality, as they are made from various materials and objects, such as straw, wood, metal, plastic, cloth, hats, umbrellas, pots, pans, dolls, and even bicycles. He captures their beauty and humor with his camera, creating portraits that reveal their personalities and stories.
The message of the exhibition
The exhibition at Villa Simone aims to share Hans Silvester’s fascination and respect for scarecrows with the public. It also invites the viewers to reflect on the meaning and value of these humble and often neglected figures in our contemporary world. As Hans Silvester says in his introduction to the exhibition: “Scarecrows are witnesses of a rural world that is disappearing. They are also testimonies of human creativity and ingenuity. They are part of our heritage and our memory. They deserve our attention and our admiration.”
